Big donor secrecy: ‘Irony, but it’s not hypocrisy’

CHICAGO — Democratic attacks on the Koch brothers for secretive campaign spending have become a virtual plank in the party’s platform, but it turns out big-money liberals can be just as defensive when their own closed-door activities are put in the spotlight.

During a gathering here of major Democratic donors this week that has raised more than $30 million for liberal groups, questions about the party’s split personality on the issue were dodged, rejected or answered with an array of rationalizations. That is, when they weren’t met with recriminations or even gentle physical force.

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Those who did address the issue at the annual spring meeting of the Democracy Alliance donor club at the Ritz-Carlton sounded not unlike the conservatives who bristle at questions about their own big-money activity. Their donations are animated by a desire to right a country headed down the wrong path, both sides argue.

The liberal strain of the argument is usually sprinkled with a heaping helping of moral superiority. Their most generous backers are giving to candidates and causes that could hurt their bottom line by raising taxes on the denizens of their elite tax bracket, the argument goes, whereas conservative big donors are seeking to pad their pockets by trying to slash taxes and regulations that impinge on their business.

“The people who are giving money into politics here are interested in changing the system. They’re not interested in getting return on investment,” said former Stride Ride president Arnold Hiatt, who donated $1.9 million to Democratic super PACs in 2012, not including gifts to nonprofits that aren’t required to disclose their donors. “You can focus on the irony, but it’s not hypocrisy because we’re not trying to get something for our donations.”

Recent court decisions have empowered super-rich partisans like the members of the DA, as the group is known, by vastly expanding the types and amounts of cash that can flow into campaigns. In the new landscape, it’s even more important for politicians and operatives to get in front of major donors, so conventions held by the DA and conservative industrialists Charles and David Koch are a hot ticket. They can help form consensus around politicians and exert major influence over the direction of their respective parties from behind closed doors.

And, while many of the donors and operatives gathered here decry the new system — and support measures to reduce the role of money in politics and increase transparency — they are nonetheless active participants.

“Most of these people would love to put themselves out of business,” said David Axelrod, President Barack Obama’s former campaign guru. “Most of these people would prefer a country in which big donors didn’t play as large a role in our politics,” added Axelrod, who in 2012 branded the Koch brothers and other conservative big-donor groups “contract killers in super PAC-land.”

“But so long as money in politics is required, there are going to be people on both sides who are willing to step up and provide it,” said Axelrod, who delivered the keynote at the DA’s Tuesday night dinner.

While sources say the Democracy Alliance has discussed holding open-press sessions that would be more consistent with its support for transparency in politics, for now the group — like the Koch network — goes to great lengths to keep its gatherings private. Locations are a closely held secret, reporters are barred from the sessions, and participants are prohibited from discussing the proceedings.

Few donors or participants spoke to POLITICO on the record. Top Obama White House aide Valerie Jarrett, New York City Mayor Bill de Blasio and Kentucky Democratic Senate candidate Alison Lundergan Grimes all ignored questions about whether Democrats are hypocritical on big money as they walked between a bank of elevators in the lobby and a promenade leading to the rooms hosting the DA panels and speeches.

Jarrett refused to make eye contact with a reporter asking such a question on Monday night, while de Blasio on Sunday night said, “My friend, we’re not doing media right now. We’re happy to talk to you another time,” as a handler stepped between the quick-walking mayor and a reporter. When Grimes, following a closed-door meet-and-greet with major donors Tuesday, was asked about liberal efforts to vilify the Kochs and other major conservative donors, she said, “I sure appreciate your time. You have to go through our communications department,” then stepped into an elevator and stood behind an aide.

Communications staffers for de Blasio and Grimes did not respond to subsequent requests for comment.

Democracy Alliance staff chastised a reporter during an attempt to interview major donor Jonathan Soros as he headed toward a panel on campaign finance reform. “Sir, you’re not allowed to go past here,” said one staffer, as another grabbed this reporter’s arm to prevent him from walking with Soros, who co-founded a super PAC, called Friends of Democracy, that intends to spend as much as $6 million in 2014 boosting candidates who support campaign finance reforms including enhanced disclosure.

“If it’s not sanctioned by our PR department, we can’t actually have anybody approach anybody for any kind of interview or sound bite or anything like that,” security supervisor Joe Rios said, explaining that DA representatives had asked him to enforce the charge.

DA spokeswoman Stephanie Mueller later explained that attendees were complaining about “aggressive” interview attempts and urged POLITICO to “respect their privacy.”

Democracy Alliance partners range from rich individuals like billionaire currency trader George Soros (Jonathan’s father) and Houston trial lawyers Amber and Steve Mostyn to deep-pocketed unions to corporations like Amalgamated Bank, which was introduced as a new member in Chicago. Its president, Keith Mestrich, declined to comment when asked why the bank joined the DA.

The group holds two conferences a year, which include a mix of entertainment — donors at the Ritz were treated to a stand-up routine by “The Daily Show” co-creator Lizz Winstead and a private curator-led tour of the Art Institute of Chicago — and panels on elevating progressive issues like income inequality, climate change, drug reform, gun control, abortion rights and the death penalty.

But the real action typically occurs on the sidelines. The Democratic data juggernaut NGP-VAN rented a 13th-floor conference room to hold meetings with operatives throughout the conference. And, on Sunday night, Michael Vachon, a representative for George Soros (who did not attend the conference), huddled with AFL-CIO officials Richard Trumka, Damon Silvers and Michael Podhorzer to discuss ways to rally Democrats using income inequality. No one in the group responded to requests for comment sent later via email, though Podhorzer did accidentally drop his phone into a massive rubber-duck-filled fountain in the middle of the Ritz lobby.